Neuroprotective Effects of Vitamin D on Patients With Traumatic Brain Injury: A Clinical Trial

 Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a globally-critical socioeconomic and public health problem. Introducing medications and strategies to treat and improve the prognosis of TBI is crucial. Current literature not only supports the key role of vitamin D on normal brain function, but also helps recovering from a myriad of pathologies. The present research was conducted to evaluate the neuroprotective effects of vitamin D on patients with TBI presenting to Imam Khomeini Hospital, Sari, Iran.

Methods and Materials/Patients: 

This randomized clinical trial assigned patients with vitamin D levels of over30 ng/ml to an intervention group (n=42) and a control group (n=42), who respectively received a single dose (150,000 units) of vitamin D and a placebo upon admission. The Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) and mortality were recorded at the beginning of the study and three months after the final prescription.

 The mean GCS score upon admission was obtained as 8.64±2.29 in the vitamin D group and 8.42±2.93 in the placebo group. This score was respectively obtained as 13.50±1.85 and 10.97±2.37 upon discharge, suggesting a significant difference as per the t-test (P=0.04).The mean Glasgow Outcome Score (GOS) upon discharge was obtained as 4.24±1.51 in the intervention group and 4.10±1.40in the controls. The t-test suggested insignificant differences in the GOS between the two groups upon admission (P=0.823). After three months, the GOS respectively reaching desirable levels in 49.7% and 62.8% of cases in the placebo and intervention groups revealed statistically significant differences among the two groups (P=0.03).

The present results showed the improving effects of vitamin D on level of consciousness and outcomes in patients with acute TBI. More studies are suggested to be performed to investigate the effects of other medications, including amantadine and methylphenidate with a larger sample size.